BSkyB deadline extended for appeal against ITV share sale

by Staff, Brand Republic 14-Jan-08, 10:30

LONDON - BSkyB has been given an extension to the deadline for it to decide whether it will appeal the Competition Commission's ruling that its 17.9% stake in ITV is against the public interest.

The company originally had until January 16 to appeal, but the Competition Appeals Tribunal has granted it the right to wait until John Hutton, the secretary of state for business, enterprise and regulatory reform, has released his conclusion on a report on the matter.

The Competition Commission recommended that BSkyB reduce its stake in ITV from the present 17.9% to under 7.5%. If BSkyB is forced to sell its shares, it stands to make a loss of hundreds of millions. It paid 135p a share when it bought the stake in November 2006, totalling £940m. Today, shares in ITV were trading at 68.9p.

The Financial Times reports that, with no obvious buyer for the stake, the share price could sink further.